I have several draft posts that are sitting, patiently waiting their turn to get posted and make their debut on allthatchatter. They are waiting on me. Yes, I am the hold up.

Timing, is it really everything? Or, is restraint the master of timing?

One of the posts I started was supposed to debut instead of The Dresser. It’s about the sirens in the Odyssey. The concept was the same but the approach was different. I was focusing on the sirens and how they were not the most gorgeous of creatures but there was power in their song. They had the power to persuade the travelers to steer towards them and ultimately crash their boats into the rocks. Death was the fate of those travelers. How is that like The Dresser? Everything you think is valuable or worthy of your time is not.

I realized on Saturday, the story of the Odyssey as I am to share it is not about the sirens but about Odysseus. As he was traveling, he knew he would pass the sirens. He was prepared. He had all of his men put wax in their ears and tie him to the mast of the boat. Restraint. He had heard of the sirens and their power. Odysseus was a proven warrior on the battlefield but he knew he could not win against the sirens. Better yet, he knew which battle to walk away from.

Restraint, as I see it, for this season in my life is learning to walk away, be quiet or avoid the situation all together. Restraint takes discipline. Restraint takes humility. Combine restraint with discernment. Restraint takes courage. Restraint takes preparation. Restraint may be inconvenient but it’s worth it in the end.